Stern Pinball To Sponsor IFPA State Championship Series
U.S. Pinball Tournament To Raise Funds for 'Kids Fight Cancer'

MELROSE PARK, Ill., Jan. 16, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Stern Pinball, Inc., the world's leading maker of real pinball games, today announced it's proud to be a premiere sponsor of the first ever International Flipper Pinball Association's State Championship Series. IFPA State Championship Series will bring together over 440 finalists representing 28 different IFPA State Championships all taking place on Saturday, February 8th in various locations across the country.

Over 5,000 players participated in qualifying matches in 2013 for the inaugural State Championship Series to earn one of the coveted finalist spots. The popularity of the series is a welcomed reminder of the renewed interest in and the thriving pinball community that seems to be growing incrementally.

"We are pleased to sponsor the first IFPA State Championship Series. It is wonderful to acknowledge the talented players and be part of the resurgence," said Gary Stern, Chairman and CEO of Stern Pinball, Inc. "It's also a great opportunity for us to help out Kids Fight Cancer, a local Chicago-based organization, whose motto 'celebrate life' is represented in each creative project we undertake."

In just eight short years, the International Flipper Pinball Association has been able to bring together over 22,000 players now ranked (World Pinball Player Rankings) by competing in over 1,500 leagues and tournaments taking place across the globe as evidenced by IFPA's 29 different country directors.

The International Flipper Pinball Association was created with the purpose of encouraging, supporting and endorsing competitive pinball throughout the world. The organization provides oversight and assistance to not only establishing pinball leagues but also tournaments and other promotional activities.

Stern Pinball is the leading designer and manufacturer of arcade-quality pinball games on the planet. The company traces its lineage to Philadelphia, PA in the 1930s where Sam Stern entered the business of operating pinball games. Sam subsequently moved to Chicago where he became part owner and President of Williams Manufacturing, a pioneer in the pinball industry. Sam passed his lifelong enthusiasm for the game and the business of pinball to his son, Gary Stern, who founded Stern Pinball. Today pinball remains one of the world's favorite pastimes.

Visit the IFPA website for details about the organization and upcoming events.

About Stern Pinball, Inc. Stern Pinball, Inc., located just outside of Chicago, Illinois, is the leading producer of pinball games in the world. Stern's highly talented creative and technical teams design, engineer and manufacture popular arcade-quality pinball games. Recent popular Stern titles include Star Trek, Metallica, Avengers, X-Men, AC/DC, Tron, Transformers, Avatar, Iron Man, Batman, Spiderman and many more. All of Stern's pinball games are crafted by hand and assembled by Stern's expert team in the United States. Both pinball enthusiasts and casual players around the globe enjoy Stern's games. For more information, please visit www.sternpinball.com.

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